by Bob Walsh
Pelican Bay is a CA state prison facility located way up north near the Oregon border. Its guests are, generally speaking, violent assholes and gang members. They have been known from time to time to act out.
On Wednesday two inmates began duking it out, probably in an attempt to get staff to respond. As officers responded more prisoners jumped into the fight (called a melee by the prison even though a melee is, by definition, a free-for-all, which this wasn't, but it sounds better than RIOT).
The fight on a prison rec yard eventually drew both rifle fire and impact rounds from 37mm gas guns from the towers as well as pepper spray and baton strikes from the staff on the ground. When the dust settled eight officers and seven inmates were injured. One officer will require further surgery for a shoulder injury. Five inmates were hit with rifle fire. Some are still hospitalized.
Prisons will continue to be unpleasant places until we start incarcerating a better class of people.
1 comment:
The name Pelican Bay sounds like a nice vacation spot.
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